Despite the dot-com crash of a few years ago, some things remain free -- and thankfully, websites are one of them. Better yet, the competitive pressure of free websites have forced commercial hosting companies to streamline and reduce costs -- resulting in rates for really good shared hosting as low as $6-10/month. (Check out Dreamhost for cheap high-quality web hosting.)

If you choose to start out with completely free webhosting the price you will pay is usually a banner floating at the top or side of your web pages. This is not suitable for a commercial web presence but fine for a quick, no-guilt hobby page!

I've collected here a list of some free webhosting companies to save you a little time:

Free Web Site Rundown

ZeroCatch (http://www.0catch.com/)- One of the best free Web hosts that I've seen, ZeroCatch offers 100 megs of space and speedy, reliable servers. This banner-ad supported host has many features include FTP support, site promotion and more.

TopCities.com - A reliable free Web space provider, TopCities.com offers you 150 megabytes of space and free subdomains. You upload your files using FTP, or via their online EasyUpload utility. TopCities also offers a number of free enhancements for your site, such as a guestbook and a message board. They also feature a free submission utility to help you get listed in the Web's search engines.

Host Department - This free Web hosting service offers 100 megs of space, a choice of domains, and unlimited traffic. Unlike most free services of this kind, Host Department doesn't place banner ads on your pages. This service also offers several free enhancements for your site, including a guestbook, a message board and online forms, as well as full FTP access.

FreeWebPage.org - This is a solid, free Web hosting service that includes a lot of helpful features. An ad-supported service, FreeWebPage.org gives you 150 megs of space and your own subdomain. Other features include direct FTP access, a guestbook, a message board, form mail and lots more.

250Free.com - A fast-growing free Web hosting service that offers a generous 250 megs of space, as well as top-notch tech support. 250Free.com features an easy-to-use Web-based account manager, as well as FTP access. This service is MSN TV-friendly.

DotEasy - Looks real good! Free email and no advertising. I think they are trying to get you in the door as a future potential customer -- a nice approach if you ask me!

NewbieSite - No banners, pop ups, text links or other ads. The catch? -- a $22 domain name transfer fee.

MS11 - Totally free with no advertising! The catch? -- a one-time $11 activation fee.

00 Free Host - A little slow and the regular top-of the page banner.

Geocities.Yahoo - Good value for the money (free, that is) but an annoying floating ad.

WorldZone - 50mb space, free email, free support and an annoying banner. Looks pretty good but don't buy the add-on stuff like the $30 domain name registration (you shouldn't pay more than $10 for a domain name registration nowdays.)

Brinkster - Brinkster has a free "educational plan" with stripped down features (no email, no private domain name).